Alabama

North Alabama residents Zachary Marshall, left, and Johnny Wolfsberger talk about their reluctance to enroll in a health insurance plan as required by Obamacare. Reaching young people has vexed navigators and others who are trying to expand the ranks of the insured. (Paul Gattis/pgattis@al.com)

MOBILE, Alabama – With a March deadline looming to enroll in a government-mandated health insurance plan or face financial penalties, advocacy groups in southwest Alabama are stepping up efforts to reach the uninsured – particularly young people.

Most uninsured people face a $95 penalty if they fail to obtain health insurance by March 31. Figures released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services this week show that the people in Alabama and across who have signed up through exchanges created by the Affordable Care Act have skewed older.

Heath insurance information

People wanting information about how to set up for government-subsidized health insurance can attend one of the following forums:

Jan 23 from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 P.M. on Jan. 23 and on Jan. 30. At the Ben May Public Library.

Every Saturday in the Bel Air Mall in January between 10 .m. and 8:30 p.m.

The Fairhope Public Library most Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. and Fridays at 9:30 a.m.

Hannah Duncan, a so-called “navigator” trained to help folks buy insurance, said she has had trouble reaching young people in the 10 southwest Alabama counties she works in.

“We are just continuing to keep getting the information out there for people that aren’t on their parents’ insurance,” said Duncan, who works for the nonprofit Enroll Alabama. “I have not enrolled many people under 30.”

The issue is important because the success of the health reform law, known popularly as Obamacare, hinges on younger and healthier people to balance the older and sicker folks who consume more health services.

Rebecca Titford, a volunteer for Organizing for Action, recalled a recent advertising campaign on pop radio station WABD in an effort to draw young people to a recent health care forum in Baldwin County. A half-dozen people showed up, only one of whom was young, she said.

‘They just did not respond the way we hoped they would,” she said. “I think it’s going to really take young people to do the outreach.”

Titford said she thinks younger people feel invincible and also are more likely to struggle with bills. A health insurance quote that seems like a bargain to a 40-year-old might be out of reach to 20-somethings, she said.

“I think we’ve overestimated what young people are willing to pay,” said Titford, who has sponsored regular signup sessions at the Fairhope Public Library and other Baldwin County locations.

Titford said she gives out information to folks at the Fairhope library most Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. and Fridays at 9:30 a.m. The need is great, even in a comparatively rich county like Baldwin, she said.

“It’s a great myth that we’re living in the land of milk and honey,” she said.

Another issue facing Obamacare revolves around Alabamians who are ineligible for Medicaid because the state refused to accept federal money to expand the program but who do not earn enough money to qualify for subsidies through the health care exchange.

“I’ve helped a lot of people. But the state of Alabama did not expand Medicaid,” Duncan said. “I’ve also met a lot of people who fall in that gap.”

Lawyer Henry Brewster said he has encountered the same issue in trying to spread the word about Obamacare in Mobile County.

“That’s really tragic,” she said.

A coalition of organizations is sponsoring information sessions at the main library in downtown Mobile on Jan 23 and Jan. 31.

“We’re going to try to set up as many events as possible,” he said.

Brewster said he got involved in the effort because he thinks it is important for everyone to have health insurance. “I’ve always been really interested in universal health care since I interned in Congress in the ’70s,” he said.

Updated at 6:31 p.m. on Jan. 20 to correct an incorrect date for an information session on the Affordable Care Act at the Mobile library.